Hopes For A Quiet Afternoon

17 November 2012

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Rick Cowdery

NOTHING will please Rene Gilmartin more than if he does not see any action at Fleetwood on Saturday, but he still wants to be involved.

‘Reg’, as he is known in the dressing-room, looks set to be given another chance between the sticks in Lancashire after making his npower League 2 debut in last Saturday’s 2-2 home draw with league leaders Gillingham.

“If I don’t have much to do, then the team is playing well and we’re on top and more than likely winning the game,” he said.

“But you do want to be a part of it – you do your little bits and pieces in the dressing-room with the lads – and, if it’s a quiet game, my voice will still be hoarse.

“You’re still a part of a team, there’s still 11 of you out there, and you affect the game as much as you can.

“But, if it’s a quiet game for me, hopefully it’s a lively game for the strikers.”

Football League new boys Fleetwood are the moneyed favourites to win promotion again this season, and Saturday’s game will be a tall task for the Pilgrims, but that does not faze Rene.

“Look at Gillingham - we played them off the park,” he said. “League position doesn’t mean an awful lot when you’ve got a team-spirit and everyone’s feeling good in the camp.

“On the day, anyone can beat anyone in this league and I’d like to think that we can do that. We just need to get our performances and our consistency and we’ll hopefully pick up a few wins.

“It was great to get my league debut – to get in the team and show the gaffer what I can do.

“I was disappointed that we didn’t get the win, but we showed the fans the spirit we have in the camp. We’ve got a lot of leaders who are all fighting in the same direction.”

Rene missed out on being able to challenge Jake for the No.1 position earlier in the season after damaging himself in pre-season training.

“You have to accept injuries in your career,” he said. “Obviously, it wasn’t an ideal pre-season for me in that I came in and did a bit of damage in the first week.

“I’ve had to be patient – I’ve done a lot of work in the gym and in rehab with the physio department here and it’s worked out well.